The Mercy Corps Blog

Blog Post Posted November 15, 2009, 10:14 pm by Leah Hazard

A little here and there can add up to a lot

There are a lot of important ways to support Mercy Corps — from donations in the midst of an emergency to monthly givers who support our work all year long. But there are a lot of less obvious ways to support Mercy Corps that can add up to a whole lot — especially if all of our supporters get involved:

• Shop Amazon? Bookmark this link right now and use it every time you shop. We’ll receive 4% to 8.5% of the purchase price, depending on order volume.
• Shop Powells.com using this link and Mercy Corps will receive 7.5% of the purchase price.
• Cafegive allows you to purchase from a variety of online stores while donating a percentage of your purchase to support Mercy Corps’ work. Simply follow the instructions and choose Mercy Corps as your cause.
• Indonique Tea and Chai: 10% of every purchase of tea is donated to Mercy Corps to fund programs that positively impact the communities where their teas are picked.
• Coffee Bean International: Buy a pound of Cafe Aldea Nicaragua — a delicious single-origin coffee grown in the remote mountains of northern Nicaragua — and $2 will go to fund projects run by Mercy Corps' local partner.
• Purchase sustainable apparel from Rahzo and select Mercy Corps upon checkout to receive a donation for your purchase.

Share the links with family and friends. They can help the Mercy Corps mission just by remembering us as they shop. I can’t help but think if all Mercy Corps supporters did this, the impact could be huge.

**Updated: I forgot to mention our partnership with NAU. Nau.com is a key Mercy Corps supporter. From 11/30 through 12/06, Nau will offer customers 30% off merino wool and wool sweaters while directing 10% of sales to their Partners for Change, including Mercy Corps. The promo code is "GIVE".

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Blog Post Posted July 28, 2009, 6:00 pm by Leah Hazard

In Pakistan, families begin to return home

The latest update just in from our emergency-response team in Pakistan:

The Government of Pakistan estimates there are 3.584 million internally displaced persons (IDPs) with 24,841 families in camps and 236,908 families outside camps.

The number of IDPs residing in schools has grown due to pressure on host communities.

The UN and Government of Pakistan report that approximately 300 families a day are returning to Buner. While people are returning to safe areas, international NGOs report much lower figures.

The Taliban continue to claim responsibility for bombings and gun attacks throughout Pakistan. The shooting of a senior UNHCR staff, and his guard, during a failed kidnap attempt outside one of the major camps close to Peshawar has increased the sense of general insecurity among the humanitarian community. However, the areas where IDPs are currently residing are relatively safe.

Water and sanitation projects have been completed at 22 schools, including 35 new latrines and 53 bathing spaces constructed, 5 motor pumps and 11 hand pumps installed or repaired, eight new water tanks built, and 380 hygiene kits distributed. Additionally, 25 solid-waste bins have been constructed, 2 new soakage pits rehabilitated, 8 septic tanks repaired, and 13 water coolers and 1 water filter installed.

As of July 15, 98.8% of the 21,103 checks we distributed to displaced families had been cashed. Most families used the money for food, clothing and medicine.

Mercy Corps has trained 30 monitors on how to work with children in our psychosocial program. We conducted five trainings on nutrition with 176 mothers. They also were given money to purchase food for their kids.

The change in weather expected with the onset of the monsoons may cause flooding, exacerbating conditions in camps and schools. This may worsen health and sanitation throughout the IDP population.

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Blog Post Posted July 17, 2009, 2:10 pm by Leah Hazard

Photo of the Day: Gardening in Zimbabwe

We helped these Zimbabwean gardeners adopt farming techniques that are lighter on the land and that increase soil fertility, such as intermingling crops and using organic compost.

Photo: Robert Maroni/Mercy Corps

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Blog Post Posted July 8, 2009, 3:45 pm by Leah Hazard

Photo of the Day: A message of hope

Psychosocial programing may not be the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Mercy Corps' work, but one look at this photo and you realize how important it is.

Photo: Zhang Xu for Mercy Corps

Following the Sichuan Earthquake last year in China, Mercy Corps worked to help the quake's youngest survivors cope with the trauma. Today, more than 1,600 teachers and psychologists have been trained in special methods to work with disaster-affected children.

Here, Han Wang School students display messages of support they received from Mercy Corps friends and donors in the United States.

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Blog Post Posted June 16, 2009, 11:26 am by Leah Hazard

Photo of the Day: Republic of Georgia

Photo: Jeffrey Austin for Mercy Corps

A former police building is being used as temporary housing for internally-displaced persons. In this photo, our staff members met with displaced families to assess needs for a winterization program.

Learn more about our work in Georgia, where we are promoting agricultural livelihoods and economic development.

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Blog Post Posted June 11, 2009, 10:52 am by Leah Hazard

Photo of the Day: Zimbabwe's AIDS Orphans

Photo: Cassandra Nelson/Mercy Corps

This photo was taken in May 2007 in Chitungwiza, Zimbabwe, where we're assisting vulnerable, economically-disadvantaged children and families that are dealing with the AIDS epidemic.

Learn how we're creating support systems for Zimbabwe's poorest children.

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Blog Post Posted June 9, 2009, 10:37 am by Leah Hazard

Photo of the Day: Empowering Women in Sudan

Photo: Rodrigo Ordonez/Mercy Corps

Participants of the 2007 Mercy Corps' conference "Strengthening Women's Participation and Leadership in Southern Sudan."

Learn more about what Mercy Corps is doing to empower women across the globe.

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Blog Post Posted June 5, 2009, 9:10 am by Leah Hazard

Photo of the Day: Timor-Leste

A youth in Becora Village, Timor-Leste, prepares the podium for a sport event. Our youth capacity building project, “Youth for All for Peace and Reconciliation,” is funded by USAID and implemented by our local partner Timor Aid. The skills developed under this program will allow youth representatives to begin promoting peace and reconciliation within their communities.

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Blog Post Posted May 27, 2009, 11:00 am by Leah Hazard

Not your typical cultural exchange

Photo: Leah Hazard/Mercy Corps

There’s some work Mercy Corps is obviously associated with: humanitarian aid, economic development, and disaster relief. But there’s some work we do that’s more surprising to people... even those familiar with us as an organization: peace and conflict resolution, youth programming to promote global citizenship and… cultural exchanges?

Last week, Mercy Corps partnered with the All China Youth Federation (ACYF) to support a week-long program on social entrepreneurship and innovation. The program took us from the Nike Campus to the coast – from the Columbia River Gorge to Timberline Lodge. And as part of this, I found myself in a park in Lyle, Washington, witnessing a cultural exchange between future Chinese leaders, the members of the River Peoples, and citizens of Lyle.

The evening was full of surprising images: one of the ACYF participants from the minority Buyi ethnic group from China’s Guizhou province, conversing with the oldest living relative of Chief Joseph. She shared that she too, came from a minority group. A gentleman who can only be described as a Chinese-Tibetan Frank Sinatra serenaded the crowd before Native American dancers performed on the sidelines of a traditional salmon feast for tribal elders and Mercy Corps’ ACYF guests. Tribal leaders explained the Native American history of genocide in the United States, as members of the ACYF listened attentively. Meanwhile, the citizens of Lyle managed the details behind the scenes, making sure the event ran successfully.

The story was not a simple one. But somehow the Mercy Corps visit of 18 Chinese leaders prompted the traditionally standoffish citizens of Lyle and members of the local tribes to organize a cultural exchange to share food, traditions and friendship.

Our disaster relief efforts remain at the core of our efforts, but our side projects are certainly powerful as well.

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